Assigbtob



M. PARIDON.

, MEANS FOR ALIGNING AND FEEDING BOX MEMBERS.

' APPLICATION "FILED NOV- 5,}921- V 1,430,842,- Patented Oct. 3, 1922.

L TT as than 0 e it i MIGEIAEL PARIDON, 6F BARB ETUN, OHIQ, ASSIGNOR DIAMOND MATCH COMPANY, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION 3F ILLINOIS.

BEELKNS FOR ALIG-NING AND FEEDING!- ZBOK IirIEIi'EBEB-S.

Application filed November 5, 1921.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, MICHAEL PARIDON, a citizen of the United States, and resident of Barberton, in the county of Summit and to of Ohio, have invented certain new and useful Tm rovements in Means for Aligning and heading Box Members, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to means for aligning and feeding box members, such, for example, as the trays or shucks of match boxes; having reference more especially to apparatus for separating box members from a mass of the same and properly positioning them for delivery in endwise succession to a box filling or other machine.

The invention may be described as a modification of and improvement on the box-tray supply mechanism disclosed in Letters Patent of the United States No. 1,086,210, dated February 3, 1914, which patented mechanism includes a rotary hopper for the reception of empty box-trays in mass, said hopper having internal vanes by means of which trays are carried upward from the mass and then dropped within the upper. portion of the hopper; a pair of, helicallyformed spaced-apart rolls mounted to rotate within the hopper and arranged to receive the empty trays thus dropping from the vanes; a trough or guide structure located below and intermediate of the rolls to receive the trays that enter in endwise position into the space between the rolls, while others not so positioned are returned by the rolls to the mass; a traveling cone veyei' hi1'angecl to travel in and longitudr' nally of the bottom of the trough or guide structure and operative to remove therefrom the edgewise positioned trays, and an.

inclined il-shaped trough extension into which the thus positioned trays are dis charged in endwise succession and thereby caused to gravitate bottoms down; all as fully set forth in said Letters Patent.

The object of the present invention is so to construct the trough or guide structure and the conveyor therein that box members, whether trays or shucks, are tilted laterally within the structure and severally discharged in that condition intothe'outer or transfer element, on which latter they gravitate laterally to proper position for delivery to the box filling or other machine, as will be hereinafter described and claimed.

Serial No. 513,148.

Fig. 3 is a transverse section, enlarged,

same, as

of the helically-formed rolls, the intermediate tray-receiving and discharging trough,

and the conveyer; box trays being indicated within the trough and between the rolls.

Figz'ei IS a longitudinal vertical section through the trough, as on the line 4-4 of Fig. 8.

Fig. 5 is a cross-section of the inclined transfer trough into which the box members are delivered from the trough within the hopper.

Fig. 6 is a view of the delivery end of the hopper trough.

Fig. 7 is a perspective view of one of the arched or rounded links of the conveyer.

Referring to the drawings, 10 designates a rotary hopper comprising a drum mounted to turn between housings ll, 12. This drum is rotated in any suitable manner. it may be provided with circumferential rails 13 which rest upon and are driven by appropriate wheels or pulleys located at the base ofthe housings, as described in Patent No.

.1,086,21O aforesaid. /Vithin the drum are suitably-disposed guard rings 14 between which are supported spaced-apart vanes 15. Box members, such as trays or shucks, are

introduced in mass into the lower portion of the drum through an opening 16 in the housing 11, and as the drum rotates the vanes pick up the box members in their path and carry them upward to a position above the axis of rotation of the drum, whereupon they drop from the vanes.

l7 designates a pair of spaced-apart taporing helical rolls which are journaled in hearings in the end housings and are rotated in any suitable manner upwardly and inwardly toward each other, as indicated by the arrows in Fig. 3. As herein illustrated the shafts of the rolls are provided adjacent the housing 11 with meshing gear wheels 18, and one of the shafts adjacent the other housing is provided with a sprocket wheel 19 to which motion is transmitted from the basal driving mechanism through a sprocket chain 20. The rolls are so positioned that the bot: members which are carried up by the vanes of tee rotating drum are dropped upon the rel s, Giving to their opposite rotation and helical i rmation rolls function to carry l'iaclrward all surplus be members deposited thereoin including those that become interlocked with one another, yet permit a su'fiicient number of the box members to drop edgewise between the rolls and into a horizontal trough 21, or equivalent guide structure, which is arranged between and longitudinally of the rolls.

Extending along, the bottom of the trough is the upper run of an endless chain convey-er which is mounted on sprocket wheels 23 arried by shatts 524: at or admcent the respective ends of the trough. On the shaft adjacent the delivery end ot the trough a hovel wheel with which meshes a simi- .1: wheel 26 on an adjace shaft 27, he latter shalt bearing, a gear wheel 28 in mesh with a gear wheel 29 conveniently formed on the adjacent end of one of: therolls, Thus appropriate motion is transmitted from the roll to the conveyor.

At the delivery end of the trough 21 an ii'iclined trough 21 which leads to a box filling machine or other instrumentality or point of discharge, The'trough 21 is iongitudinally vibrated by means such as an eccentric 3O rotating in a soclret piece 31 on the bottom of the trough, said eccentric being: fast on the upper end 0'? a rotating vertical shaft 32.

vi hen a tray is properly positioned in the trough. 21 so as to present its long narrow side to the conveyor, such tray is tree of the rolls 1? and is thereby carried endwise to the dircharging end o'lj' the trough and de livered thence'into the transfer trough; but if such tray should bestanding on end within the trou h 21 the tray when it progresses between the forward larger portions of the rolls will be gripped thereby and lifted out of the trough, thence being returned to the mass within. the hopper.

The above described mechanism excepting as hereinafter explained, is or may be identical with that set out in Patent No. 1,086,- 210 aforesaid.

According: to my invention the surface of the conveyor which is presented to the box members deposited within the trough 21 is so shaped as to per it the lateral tilting of such. members, Where the oonveyer coninrises an endless chainof links as herein illustrated the alternate links are arched or rounded on their outer faces, as at 33. The inner wallsof the trough, above the con veyer, arespaced apart a distance somewhat greaterthan the depth of a box tray or shuck; such walls in'the present instance being slightly flared or inclined. outward, as at 3 Consequently when a. box member is positioned upon the arched or convex face of the chainlinks suchv member is tilted by to one side or the other of the trough and is supported in that position during its progress to the discharging end of the ouch. -i l l ien the box member resting upon ie chain is a tray the bottom gravitates to the adjacent side of the trough, as indicated in Fig. 3; but when the box member resting upon the chain is a shuclr or cover such member in its progress is tilted toward and against either side of the trough. In any case the box member is in an inclined position when it reaches the delivery end of the trough. The floor of the trough at this end is arched as at F35, so that the box member will maintain their inclined position and thus be discharged into the vibrating transfer trough 21. in the present instance the iioor ot the latter tror gh, instead of being; c oncare as in the p ti tl at, seen Fig. 5, Immediately after inclined boi; member is delivered into vibr ne troughsuca member assumes by gravi I is thus fed downward to the filling or other machine. lit the member be a tray it will gravitate bottom down upon the door ot the trough but the member be a shuclr or cover it will drop flatwise upon t e trough,

Hence it the boil members he tr s tney will be successively end to end, bottoms down, along; the transfer trough, and it such mem here be shuclrs they will be fed successively end. to end, with one wide side or the other on the bottom of the transfer trough.-

lt is to be understood that my invention is not limited. to the specific construction discloser, as the same may b modified within the principle or my invention and the scope of appended claims.

I Claim- I 1. In mechanism for aligning" and feeding boi: members, a trough, a convever extending alone: the interior of the trough, and means tor positioning}; box members within the said trou h to present one lone: narrow side or? each ,inber to the convever, the inner walls of the trouszh being spe l cod apart above the conveyor a cistanc e greater than the depth of a box member and the receiving; surface of the conveyer being shaped to permit the box member to tilt to one side or the other of the rou h 2, In mechanism for and feed boa members,

trough, a conv-ever er-rtending along th nterior of the trough, and means for posi l J. 2 i ill/3d consti not ion, m

v allat position upon the latter and in mechanism for aligning and feeding box members, a trough, a chain conveyer extending along the interior of the trough, and means for positioning box members within the trough to present one long narrow side of each member to the chain, the inner walls oi said trough being spaced apart above the conveyer a distance greater than the depth of a box member, and the sup porting surface of the chain links being arched or rounded transversely to permit the box member to tilt to one side or the other of the trough.

4. ln mechanism for aligning and feeding box members, a trough, a conveyer extending along the interior of the trough, and means for positioning box members within the said trough to present one long narrow side of each member to the conveyer. the inner walls of the trough being spaced apart above the conveyer a distance greater than the depth of a box member, and the receiving surface of the conveyer being shaped to permit the box member to tilt to one side or the other of the trough, together with an element upon which the laterally inclined box members are discharged and permitted. to gravitate to a Hat position.

5. In mechanism for aligning and feed ing box members, a trough, a conveyer ex tendin along the interior of the trough, and means for positioning box members within the said trough to present one long narrow side of each member to the conveyer the inner walls of the trough being spaced apart above the conveyer a distance greater than the depth of a box member, and the bearing surface of the conveyer being arched or rounded transversely to permit the box member to tilt to one side or the other of the trough, together with an element upon which the laterally inclined box members are discharged from the trough and permitted to gravitate to a flat position.

6. In mechanism for aligning and feed ing box members, a trough, a chain conveyer extending along the interior of the trough, and means for positioning box members within the trough to present one long narrow side of each member to the chain, the inner walls of said trough being spaced apart above the conveyer a distance greater than the depth of a box member, and the supporting surface of the chain links being arched or rounded transversely to permit the box member to tilt to one side or the other of the trough, together with an element upon which the laterally inclined box members are discharged from the trough and permitted to gravitate to a fiat posi tion.

Signed at Barberton, in the county of Summit and State of Ohio, this 2nd day or November, A. D. 1921.

MICHAEL PARIDON. 

